


By Chance

by Full_Moon_Lover



Series: 25 Days of Christmas 2017 [25]
Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Dogs, First Meetings, Getting Together, Inspired by 101 Dalmatians, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-25
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-20 14:05:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13148223
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Full_Moon_Lover/pseuds/Full_Moon_Lover
Summary: Dan and Phil are complete strangers but their dogs are not going to stand for that for much longer.





	By Chance

**Author's Note:**

> So here it is, the last day of the 25 Days of Christmas. I've had this fic written for quite a while but I decided to leave it till the end because I wanted to end on a good note. It's my favourite fic so I really hope you like it. 
> 
> This story is based off of this amazing phan art by Alanna Harlow on Tumblr: http://alannaharlow.tumblr.com/post/167213551118/a-friend-showed-me-a-tweet-saying-they-wanted-an

Dan was a proud dog owner, he really was. Or at least he was when his dog was not getting him into all kinds of awkward situations.

Suki was well behaved, most of the time. The shiba inu kept him company when he was feeling down, helped him get the required amount of exercise and never got aggressive. Dan was grateful for her. 

What he didn’t appreciate was how out of control she got sometimes whenever he took her to a particular park nearby his apartment. 

St. James’ park in London was always one of Dan’s favourites. It was his place of choice whenever life got a little too hard and he needed somewhere to relax and unwind. Even though the park was popular with tourists, it remained peaceful. 

In the beginning, he loved taking Suki with him. It was nice to have a little company in his safe space and the shiba inu was great at distracting him with games of catch. Dan thought throwing a stick at a dog and waiting for her to fetch it would get boring after a while, but it never did. 

It seemed, that the more Suki got used to him, the more she acted out. It wasn't the acting out that hurt other people or himself but it could get annoying. Dan wasn't likely to forget the time the shiba inu ran away the second he was distracted, and he had to sprint after her, trying to catch up. 

It reminded him of just how unfit he was when, by the time he caught her after ten minutes, he was panting and trying to catch his breath. 

That was the first occurrence out of many and Dan was certain that the other frequent park visitors were used to seeing him running after his dog at this point. Suki seemed to get a thrill out of seeing him attempt to catch her without success. 

He always threatened to stop taking her to the park but all the shiba did was stick her tongue out at him and pant, almost as if she knew that he didn't have the heart to do that. 

It wasn't as if Dan could complain too much. Running after Suki was the only exercise he did, and it was keeping him active. He had gotten to where he could run after Suki for a few minutes without losing his breath, and that was a win in his book. 

It never even crossed his mind that running after his dog could one day benefit him in any way other than exercising. At least, not until a cold morning in December. 

Dan and Suki were once again at St. James' Park, and Dan was already preparing himself for another game of catch. The previous day, he didn't have time to take Suki out for her daily run. The shiba had a lot of pent up energy she needed to use. 

Their little game of catch started like every other day. They walked to Dan's favourite spot in the park where it wasn't very busy and he could enjoy some peace and quiet. He got a little time to sit down and relax before Suki nipped at his jacket and pulled. That was his sign that it was time for their game to begin. 

Suki started running as soon as she saw him getting up. Time to run. 

As annoying as Suki's game was in the beginning, Dan had started looking forward to it. It was a way for him to let off some steam of his own and he was experiencing a new-found love for the feeling of the cold morning wind going through his hair. 

They spent the next fifteen minutes like that. Suki ran through the grass and in between trees while Dan tried his best to keep up. At times he lost sight of her, but Dan never worried too much. He knew Suki would never stray very far. 

Dan felt relief course through his body when he saw his dog slowing down, a sure sign that she was getting tired and would soon stop for a little break. Even with his recent improvement in fitness, he still couldn't keep up a fast sprint for long before tiring.

He threw himself on the ground when Suki slowed down enough that he was sure she wouldn't go very far from where he was. Finally, he could rest for a few minutes while Suki played around nearby. 

It was very enjoyable. He spent a few minutes just lying down and enjoying the quiet and, when it got a little boring for him, he got out the book he was reading and got through a few pages. When the shiba inu curled up on the ground with her head on his lap and closed her eyes, he knew it was time to go. 

He had some work he needed to get through and it was nearing time to feed Suki. He got up and got out the leash from his jacket pocket, making quick work of clipping it onto Suki's collar. "Ready to go Suki?" he asked and got his reply in the form of a wagging tail. "Let's go then." 

They were nearing the park's exit when something seemed to get Suki's attention. She tensed up and sniffed the air, looking around curiously. Before Dan could try to figure out what was going on, Suki took off with a sprint, almost as if she was chasing something. 

"Not again!" he exclaimed, having no other choice other than to hold on to the leash tightly and trying his best to keep up with his excited dog. It had barely been an hour since their last run and so Dan was not in the best shape. It almost looked as if Suki was using the leash to walk him rather than the other way around. 

"Suki, calm down! I can't keep up anymore." His words fell on deaf ears and so he was left with no other choice other than trying his best to keep up. 

Unfortunately, the unplanned sprint was catching up on him. Much to Suki's dismay, he slowed down. There was no way he could keep up with Suki any longer and so he let go of the leash, hoping that his dog would take pity on him and stop. 

Thankfully, Suki stopped soon after he let go of the leash but it wasn't for the reason he expected. Rather than wanting to give her owner a break from the unexpected workout she had just made him suffer, his dog came to a halt because she spotted the thing which made her so excited in the first place. 

Dan could only watch on in bewilderment as his usually reserved dog snuggled up to what looked like a corgi, tail wagging happily. The corgi didn't seem to mind the attention. He was showing off by rolling on his back and rubbing his face with Suki and Dan found himself speechless. Suki never had a problem with showering Dan with love and affection, but she never seemed to get on well with other dogs. She much preferred ignoring other dogs and instead playing on her own or with Dan. 

Now she was not only acknowledging the corgi's presence, but she was also making it clear that she liked the other dog. Dan was baffled, and he was unsure of what he should do. 

On one hand, he was glad to see his dog interacting with another dog without being guarded but, on the other, he had no idea who the corgi belonged to. Dan never considered himself to be an overprotective owner, but he couldn't help feel cautious over watching Suki playing with a dog that seemed to have no owner. 

Just as he attempted to pull Suki away from the corgi, he heard hurried footsteps coming from in front of him. 

"Norris! Oh my god, what are you doing?" 

Dan looked up and froze when he caught sight of, he assumed, the owner of the corgi. He let go of Suki's leash just so he could get a good look at him. 

The corgi's owner couldn't be more than a few years older than him. The jet black hair and emo cut weren't what caught Dan's eye. What had him turning bright red and averting his eyes were his expressive eyes. It was as if they were speaking to Dan without the other having to say a word. It helped that the corgi's owner was attractive. 

Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Dan noticed that Suki and Norris still snuggled together and it didn't seem as if they had any intention of stopping. When Phil took a hold of Norris' leash and tried to pull him away, he was rewarded with a growl and Dan couldn't help but chuckle. 

Now that he knew the corgi wasn't some stray trying to get it on with his dog, he was a little more relaxed and didn't mind the sight of the two dogs getting along. He couldn't blame the other for being embarrassed though and so he tried to lend a hand and grabbed onto his own dog's leash. "Come on Suki, it's time to go." 

Suki listened to him right away and got up. Dan was only allowed a few seconds of surprise over her listening to him before she took off running once again. He was dragged by his dog's leash for the second time in one day and no amount of pulling convinced Suki to stop. 

He thought she was forcing him to run, hoping to get Norris to join them but he quickly realised that wasn't the case when he found himself slammed into Norris' good looking owner, Suki's leash tangling their legs together. 

Dan could feel himself turn bright red when he realised what his conniving dog did and quickly tried to untangle the leash from their legs so they could move apart. 

"I am so sorry, Suki is usually much more well behaved than this. I'm sorry." 

He quickly lost count of how many times he apologised and, after a few minutes, he was no closer to untangling them. It looked like he made it worse. 

Dan's arms were around the stranger's neck, holding on to keep his balance and keep them both from toppling backwards. His only consolation was that the stranger was holding on just as tightly to his hips, most probably for the same reason as him. Anyone walking by would think they were a couple, engaged in a passionate embrace. 

He kept trying to undo the knot with no luck, and it didn't help that Suki wouldn't stay still for long enough for him to unclip the leash from her collar. "Please stop moving Suki, I can't do shit with you wandering about from side to side." 

"Suki? That's a strange name", he said, giving up his attempts of untwisting the leash. 

Dan couldn't help but look at him with raised eyebrows. Attractive or not, no one got away with making fun of his dog's carefully thought out name. "You think Suki is strange? You named your dog Norris. I think I have an old great uncle named Norris." He desperately wanted to bite his tongue off the second he realised just what he said. 

"Way to speak to someone you fancy", thought Dan, refraining himself from face palming. 

The stranger didn't seem to be taking offence to his words though and instead snickered. "Norris is a lame name isn't it? My favourite hamster when I was young was called Norris, and I thought it fit a corgi well." 

Dan almost made a comment about getting sentimental over a hamster but then remembered he didn't even know the stranger's name. Maybe he should introduce himself before teasing the other. "That's nice. I'm Dan. I figured, since we seem trapped by this leash for now, we might as well be on a first name basis." 

"Phil," the other said, a grin present on his face. "I'd offer you a hand to shake but I'm scared that if I let go of you, we'll both fall down."

He must have realised that Dan was about to go on another long apology over the situation they found themselves in because he quickly shook his head. 

"Don't worry about it, these things happen all the time. I'm just glad I got trapped with someone like you." 

Dan couldn't help but think that things like this didn't happen frequently because usually people don't have dogs who try to set them up with strangers. He refrained from saying it out loud and just smiled. "I can't say I mind all that much either. At least Suki has good tastes although I think she's more interested in Norris than in you." 

A quick look at Suki proved his words. The shiba inu had finally settled down next to Norris and Dan couldn't help but smile when he noticed the two dogs sitting down next to each other. They were giving each other small licks on the face and both their tails were wagging happily. 

"They seem to like each other," Phil said, eyes on the two dogs. "You know... it would be a shame to ruin such a beautiful friendship. What would you say to getting a coffee with me? If we ever untangle this leash, that is."

Dan smirked but quickly nodded, not wanting to give the wrong idea. "We wouldn't be dog owners if we broke them up. You'd better get to work and help me get out of this thing. If you want to get that coffee today, at least." 

"Fine," Phil said, reaching down with his hand to try to loosen the knot. "First one to get out has to pay for coffee?" 

Dan was never one to say no to a challenge even if it was over something as stupid as untangling a dog's leash from his legs. 

"It's on."

*

2 years later...

"Dan, we're not naming the puppy Phuki. That's just... wrong." 

Dan rolled his eyes and tried not to pout. They'd been arguing over puppy names all day long, since Suki had given birth to a tiny little puppy. Looking over at Suki and Norris, he was sure they would roll their eyes at their owners if they could. Then again, after a year of living in the same apartment, they were probably used to their owners' antics by now. 

"You're the one who wanted a mix of Suki and Phoebe because she was your second favourite hamster when growing up. Suki and Phoebe makes Phuki, deal with it."

In reality, Dan didn't want to name the little puppy Phuki any more than Phil did. He was just bitter because Phil rejected his idea of combining Suki and Norris to make Nuki because it sounded like a nuclear missile. 

"We're not getting anywhere like this, are we?" Phil said, throwing himself on the sofa with a sigh. A look at the corner of the living room quickly softened his features until he was smiling fondly. It was hard not to smile at the sight of Suki and Norris cuddled in their little dog bed with a tiny puppy snuggled between them. They both looked like such proud parents that it made their hearts feel like bursting. 

"I think out of all the ideas we've come up with in the past two hours, Nuki was the best one. It's cute, and it's a combination of both his parents' names. Let's go with that." 

Dan grinned and curled up on the sofa next to Phil. "I knew you'd come around", he said before pulling in his boyfriend of two years for a quick kiss. 

He looked back to their two dogs and their newest addition and smiled. 

"I love our little family."

**Author's Note:**

> This is probably going to get a little long but it's my last author note for this year so I think I can be forgiven. 
> 
> First of all I want to thank you all. Whether you read all my fics for this year's 25 Days of Christmas, or just one, I appreciate it and I couldn't have done it without you.
> 
> Now for the more specific thank yous. Thank you to GodLikesBoysToo, Wow and dealingwiththetrickster here on AO3. You guys left very frequent comments and they kept me writing on days where I was losing my motivation. Thank you, the 25 Days of Christmas would not have been as fun for me without your lovely comments. 
> 
> I'm going to take a well deserved break from writing in the next few days but I will soon start working on a continuation to Lightning Mask and will try and have it posted in the beginning of the new year 2018. 
> 
> Finally, I want to wish you all a very happy Christmas. I hope it was filled with joy and everything your heart desires. Happy Holidays if you do not celebrate Christmas. 
> 
> Happy New year and I will see you in 2018 with many new stories. 
> 
> Love, Kristina x


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